RT journal article T1 Irregular Migration across the Mediterranean Sea: Problematic Issues Concerning the International Rules on Safeguard of Life at Sea A1 Di Filippo, Marcello K1 irregular migration K1 maritime law K1 Search and Rescue regime K1 IMO K1 EU K1 burden sharing K1 human rights K1 international cooperation K1 migración irregular K1 derecho marítimo K1 régimen de búsqueda y rescate K1 OMI K1 UE K1 distribución de las cargas K1 derechos humanos K1 cooperación internacional K1 migration irrégulière K1 droit maritime K1 système de Recherche et Sauvetage K1 distribution des charges K1 droits de l’homme K1 coopération internationale AB Migration by sea is a phenomenon which is largely associated with irregular flows and growing concern by destination States about border control and integrity of restrictive migration policies. Only incidentally, the human rights’ costs are extensively debated. The Mediterranean Sea is a crucial scenario which highlights the difficulty encountered by the Search and Rescue regime to cope with the techniques adopted by smugglers and with the additional tensions provoked by some features of EU migration law. The SAR provisions are inherently accompanied by certain elasticity, in order to take into account the variety of concrete situations. In a regional context characterized by political divergences among European states and between the latters and transit countries, some IMO and EU’s attempts to draw a solution are evaluated: it clearly emerges that the failures to find out a reasonable compromise are due to factors external to maritime law. Such factors must be addressed with more courage by the EU member states: the hot issue of the burden sharing; a really comprehensive dialogue with origin countries and transit countries on the complex subject of international migration; the renunciation to ask the cooperation of states with a negative human rights record. Absent a more far reaching policy, dramatic events and hidden deaths will sadly continue, as far as the crocodile tears of European politicians when some incident eventually reaches the attention of media and of public opinion. SN 2341-0868 YR 2017 FD 2017-07-24 LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/19480 UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/19480 LA eng DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz RD 09-may-2026